


Unexpected Surprise

by Katlyn1948



Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Again there is fluff, Art Work Attached, But mostly fluff, F/M, Fluff, Gift Exchange, Maybe some humor, Valentine's Day Fluff, Valentine’s Day Exchange
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-16 07:06:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29449749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katlyn1948/pseuds/Katlyn1948
Summary: Arya is betrothed to the crown price, His royal highness Gendry. She isn’t sure how to feel about him and he doesn’t know how to feel about her, but over time that changes and soon they find that perhaps there is more to the other than just what rumors say they are.
Relationships: Arya Stark/Gendry Waters
Comments: 9
Kudos: 99





	Unexpected Surprise

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lost_in_mirkwood](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lost_in_mirkwood/gifts).



> Well here is my written piece for Lost In Mirkwood! There is a drawing attached to this and it does come to play towards the end. I hope you enjoy this fluff ball of cheesy one liners

When he first laid eyes upon his betrothed he was surprised by how petite she was. Compared to his larger stature, she was near two heads shorter than he and when he went to greet her with a common hug, her frame was completely engulfed by his. She was smaller than some of the other women his father had tried to introduce, but there was a fight behind her gray eyes he couldn’t quite place.

She was different from the others, not just because he was the daughter of his father’s best friend, but because she did not make it a show that she came from a well respected family. On the first night after the arrival of Lord Eddard Stark and his family, well after everyone had gotten into their cups from the welcome feast, Gendry had been wondering the halls of the Red Keep as he so often did when everyone was asleep.

There were a few drunkards wandering about the halls, trying to seduce any lonely maid that had the misfortune of walking by. Of course there were the guards and several bannermen Lord Stark had invited with him. Who he was not expecting was his soon to be wife dressed in breeches drinking from a deerskin canteen hammering about with other drunk lords.

Her hair was pulled back and there was a faint shade of soot covering her face. She had tried to make herself look like a man, and to the drunks around her, she probably did, but Gendry knew. There was no way to conceal those gray eyes that had taken him from the moment she stepped into the throne room.

“Your majesty.” A drunken lord stood, giving Gendry a very awkward bow. “We did not know you to be awake.”

Gendry gave a wave of his hand, “No formalities tonight, just enjoy the ale.”

The lord gave a toothy smile and took his seat, hammering on to the disguised lady. “Your majesty, we were just having a good laugh with this boy from the North. Said he came down with his father when Lord Stark invited him.”

A smirk formed on Gendry’s lips as he took in her appearance. Her cheeks were now flushed with nervousness and she was trying to pull away from the group of intoxicated men. “And who is this?”

“What’s your name, boy? The prince is asking.” The lord shouted.

She winced at the sudden tone, but cleared her throat nonetheless, readying to speak. “Arry, your grace.”

Gendry nearly laughed at her effort to deepen her voice and wondered exactly how drunk the lords were to not notice that a high born lady was amongst them.

“Well, Arry.” He cleared his throat, trying to contain the laugh that was bubbling in his throat. “Why don’t we go for a spar in the courtyard? I heard northern boys are good with swords.”

“Sorry, your grace, can’t. Have a bad…knee.” She evaded.

Gendry nodded, “Then a drink then. Follow me.”

He rose from where the other lords were sitting and bid them a farewell, waiting as the high lady stood from her perch. She gave a dramatic bow, sending the lords off with one more good laugh before joining Gendry at his side.

They walked through the keep for a bit, making sure to be out of earshot from the other lords, before he broke her careful façade.

“Lady Arya, a surprise seeing you tonight.” He smiled.

She blushed and dipped her head, feeling the weight of his stare on her shoulders. “How did you know it was me?”

“It wasn’t that hard to see through your disguise.” He laughed. “Don’t worry, I don’t think those other lords knew a thing. Too much ale.”

“And what about you, your grace? Ale not to your fancy?” She asked as she began to wipe the soot from her face.

“I like ale just fine, thanks. But I certainly don’t drink enough to get drunk. I like to have my wits.” He confessed. It was true that his father was known to have a rather bountiful drinking habit, one that could put the kingdom in debt if not carefully managed. There were times he would catch his father with his hand up some more wench’s dress, not giving a care at how it made his mother feel. He liked to believe that it was nothing more than the ale causing his behavior, but even Gendry knew that wasn’t true. He was sure to have a few bastard siblings lurking about the streets of King’s Landing if he knew where to look.

“So the rumors aren’t true then.” She stated.

Gendry gave her a confused look, “Rumors? What rumors?”

“People talk about your father the king. About his drinking habit and his whoring. They think you’re the same way.” She shrugged as she pulled her hair from it’s tight bun, letting her waves cascade down her back. She looked beautiful then, with her hair framing her long face and the way her grey eyes gleamed in the firelight of the torches along the halls.

Gendry shook his head, “Is that why you looked horrified to marry me when you first saw me?”

She gave a curt laugh, “That, amongst other things.”

“Care to share?” He urged.

She shook her head, “I would, but it seems you’ve walked me to my chambers.”

Lady Arya gave the prince a low curtsy, a playful smile lurking on her lips. “Thank you for the escort, your grace, and if you could…perhaps keep this secret between us? I would hate for my mother to find out I was out drinking southern lords.”

Gendry returned a bow, his own smirk prominent, “Of course, Lady Arya. My lips are sealed.”

——

Arya’s time in King’s Landing wasn’t at all like she expected.

When her father announced they were making the unexpected trip to meet with the King and his son, and ultimately her betrothed, she wanted to run away. She knew that the time would eventually come where they were to take the trip so that she could marry the next heir to the throne. But even as a young girl, she never imagined that it would come so soon.

Of course, she had nearly ten years to prepare, but even with her ten and eight name day on the horizon, it didn’t make the idea of marriage, let alone to the crown prince, any less appalling. She would have gladly given her spot to Sansa, seeing she pouted about how Arya was the one to marry a prince, but her father thought that she would be the best companion of Prince Gendry Baratheon.

She had heard the rumors about the prince, how he was exactly like his father with the drinking and whoring. She would be attached to a man who wouldn’t respect her nor care if he got bastards in other women’s bellies.

The last thing she wanted was to be put in a tower a be nothing more than an absent queen to make heirs. If she were to marry this prince, then she would make his life a living hell.

Yet, when she first entered the throne room to introduce herself, she was unexpectedly surprised. He didn’t look drunk, certainly not like his father who was sitting behind him on the large iron throne about to keel over from too much ale.

His eyes were a piercing blue, yet where she expected a hard stern glare, was a soft curious gaze. She could feel him studying her, as if she wasn’t what he expected either. And only to further prove his point, he had found her disguised as a northern boy drinking ale with southern lords. She had expected him to take her straight to her father, but instead, he escorted her back to her chambers and kept her little ruse a secret.

Their interactions were a few and far between after that night, yet when they did have a moment to speak, it was filled with playful banter. So much so, it had Arya’s cheeks burning with desire. She had come to know the true prince of the realm, not the prince the people believed him to be.

And slowly, she would reveal parts about herself to him, trusting him enough to divulge her pure distaste at the thought of marriage.

“Then why agree to this union?” He asked her one afternoon while they had managed to get a moment alone with one another. They were in the open courtyard with guards posted at each corner. They may not have had chaperones, but their conversation surely wasn’t as private as she would like it to be.

Arya shrugged at her response, “My duty to my family outweighed my need to escape. Trust me, I would love nothing more than to take a horse and ride hundreds of leagues from this place and make my own way in the world. It’s silly and completely unrealistic, but it’s what I want.”

Gendry shook his head, “It’s not silly. Sometimes I dream of doing the same thing. There is so much pressure being the next heir to the throne. Everyone expects you to be something better than your predecessor, and while I plan to do exactly that, I fear that I may fail.”

“You won’t fail,” She place a gentle hand on his shoulder, giving it a light squeeze.

“And how do you know that?”

Arya gave him a wide smile, and for the first time since she knew she was destined to be the next queen, she believed the words she said to him, “Because you’ll have me at your side.”

Gendry had fallen for Lady Arya.

From the moment he saw her drinking from a deerskin canteen pretending to be a boy, he knew that he would would love that woman until the end of his days. She was different from the other ladies he had courted. They had all been prime and proper, never once straying from the ways of a lady. He would get a kiss or two out of them and on one particular night where he got too much into his cups, he happened to bed one (although he had certainly not been her first).

But with Arya Stark, it was different. She was different. She didn’t want the things normal ladies wanted and he couldn’t fault her for that. She had spunk, the kind that would make a grown man blush if he ever heard some of the words she had spoken.

As they gotten to get to know one another, she had loosened around him. He saw a side of Arya that he was sure no one knew existed. She could keep her ale and even if she was feeling the slight buzz of the alcohol, she could still beat him at a game of cards.

And she was funny.

There was no one that could make him laugh as hard as she could.

He was irrevocably, completely, and madly in love with her and he could no longer keep that information to himself.

It was the eve of her name day, and just a sennight before their wedding, when he decided to tell her his true feelings. She had been readying herself for the feast that was being held in her honor that night. Gendry had waited for her mother and sister, along with the dressing maids to exit her chambers before making his way to her door.

He rapped lightly, waiting for her to answer. The anticipation was gnawing at him and if she didn’t answer soon, he was sure to be caught.

The was a soft thud before her chamber door creaked open. She was dressed in a light blue gown with her house emblem stitched at the hem. Her sleeves reached only to her middle of her forearm, and the neckline dipped a little lower than one of her normal dresses. Gendry noticed that her hair had yet to be pinned, framing her face in wave of brown curls. He noticed some pigmentation on her cheeks, giving them a subtle blush.

“Gendry, what are you doing here?” She asked, a confused look upon her face.

Gendry pushed past her, closing the door behind him. “I needed to tell you something. I-I don’t know how to say it…but these past few weeks…gods why is this so much harder to do?”

“What is Gendry? You can tell me.” She gently urged, taking a hold of his hands in hers.

Gendry sighed at the contact and he felt his heart rate slow. He had been so worked up about telling her his feelings he hadn’t stopped to think about hers. She could just be friendly, after all she didn’t want to get married. He had to tread lightly, and perhaps telling her now wasn’t the best idea.

“Uh…never mind.” He shook his head. “I…you look beautiful.”

She gave him a perplexed stare, “Is that what you wanted to tell me, that I look…beautiful? Or is there something more?”

“Nothing more, no. I will see you tonight at the feast.” He placed a gentle kiss atop her hand, leaving her room in a hurry.

——

Arya mulled over what Gendry had said throughout the entirety of the feast. She knew there was more that he wanted—needed to say, but didn’t. Her heart has swelled at the possibility that he was there to tell her that he loved her, because over the corse of the last two moons, she had fallen for him. He was nothing like his father, in fact, he was far from it.

He had told her about the lady he had laid with, but she found that she didn’t care. He was a young man who explored his needs. She couldn’t fault him for that. But he certainly wasn’t a out and about whoring around with unnamed women, nor was he getting far into his cups.

He had ambitions and aspirations that were far from what she expected a prince to have. And she found that they had much more in common than she realized.

After the feast, she had tried to search for him, but found that he had locked himself in his chamber away from everyone and everything.

Even the days leading up to their wedding, he had been distant. Not at all like the Gendry she had come to know. It was infuriating and the night before they were to wed, she could no longer take it. She would speak to him before they were to meet at the alter.

It was easy for her to sneak out of her chambers at night; she had been doing it since her first night and slipping past her guards took little to no effort. The moment she became queen she would make it a point to get better training for their men.

She knew the way to his chambers for it had become second nature. It was true she had wandered by his door a few times, contemplating on making her way into the closed off space, but she kept her distance for fear of what other’s may think. But now she didn’t give a damn on what those would think of her if they saw her going into his chambers at night. She was about to wed him, so why would it matter.

Reaching his door, she went for the latch, thanking the gods that the door was unlocked. She closed the door lightly, careful not to wake him and made sure to latch it locked. There were candles dimly lit throughout the room and in the center was a large four poster bed with a very large, very naked man in the middle.

Gendry was covered only by a thin terry cloth sheet. Arya pushed the feeling of ogling his body aside and moved to the side of his bed, kicking it with a loud thud, “Wake up.”

Gendry stirred, barely opening his eyes before realizing that she was standing in his room in nothing but her night shift. “Lady Arya!”

He scrambled out of bed, pulling the terry cloth sheet around his waist, his cheeks burning red with embarrassment.

“What are you doing here?” He exclaimed in a whisper, careful to not wake the rest of the castle with his bewilderment.

“You haven’t spoke to me in nearly a week and I will not let our first night as husband and wife be filled with silence. What is going on with you?” She crossed her arms over her chest, covering the thin fabric of her night shift from showing anymore she wished to show.

“I-nothing…nothing is going on.” He stumbled over his words.

“That’s a lie. I know lies. Now tell me what you really wanted to say when you came to my room the day before my name day.”

Gendry sighed, “I was coming to tell you…that…I love you. That I’ve fallen in love with you. I wanted to tell you, but then…I don’t know…I was afraid that perhaps you didn’t feel the same way.”

Arya scoffed at his stupidity, “If you would have told me, I would have told you that I’ve fallen in love with you too. But that didn’t give you a right to ignore me this past week!”

“You’re right…I was just scared.” He came to wrap her in his arms, and she became suddenly aware of an invading member between them. It made her blush and she couldn’t help but pull away.

“Oh…” Gendry looked down. “I’m sorry…I was dreaming and— well perhaps it’s best I not mention it.”

“No, tell me.”

Gendry blushed, “I was dreaming about you and then…there you were. My body reacted.”

Arya nodded and a wicked through crept into her mind. Without any words, she began to pull at her night shift, untying the collar and letting it slip down her shoulders. Her right breast became exposed and when she gathered the courage, she let the rest of her night shift slip down her body. “Did you dream of me like this?”

Gendry gulped and he slowly nodded, “Arya, we shouldn’t.”

Arya closed the distance between them and she placed a hand on his broad chest. “I want you just as much as you want me, so me with me.”

Gendry dropped the terry cloth sheet from his waist and pulled Arya closer to him, crashing his lips to hers, letting her moan into his open mouth.

She could feel his rough hands move about her body, touch avenues and dimples she hadn’t known existed.

When they parted, only for a moment, she looked up into his blue eyes, trapped by the swirling irises and smiled, “Thank you for being an unexpected surprise.”


End file.
